Archive · 30 Aug 2026
Bhopal Cancels Son Chiraiya Hawkers’ Corner Tender
Bhopal’s city government wanted to consider leasing a women’s shopping area called Son Chiraiya.
However, the municipal council did not approve the proposal and sent it back for review.
The area is near a girls’ college.
Some council members worried that restaurants or hotels there could create safety and law-and-order problems.
Even so, officials uploaded a tender asking businesses to submit bids.
The tender offered a seven-year lease for at least Rs 20.35 lakh per year.
After the issue was reported, the municipal commissioner ordered the tender to be cancelled.
Officials said the tender may have been uploaded before the council’s meeting records were formally received.
Bhopal Municipal Corporation invited bids to lease the Son Chiraiya Women’s Hawkers’ Corner despite the council deferring the proposal.
The tender was uploaded on the MP e-tendering portal on August 19, the day the council discussed the matter.
Council chairperson Kishan Suryavanshi and Congress councillor Yogendra Singh Chauhan opposed the proposal over concerns about the nearby girls’ college.
The property was proposed for a seven-year lease with a minimum annual fee of Rs 20,35,202.
Commissioner Sanskriti Jain and Additional Commissioner Anju Arun Kumar ordered officials to cancel the bids immediately.
- Who
- The Bhopal Municipal Corporation, Commissioner Sanskriti Jain, council chairperson Kishan Suryavanshi, Additional Commissioner Anju Arun Kumar, and councillor Yogendra Singh Chauhan.
- What
- BMC invited bids to lease the Son Chiraiya Women’s Hawkers’ Corner, then ordered the bids cancelled after the council deferred the proposal.
- When
- The council discussed the proposal on August 19; the cancellation was ordered after the discrepancy came to light.
- Where
- Son Chiraiya Women’s Hawkers’ Corner, opposite Nutan College, near the Number 6 bus stop in Bhopal’s Zone 8, Madhya Pradesh.
- Why
- The council raised concerns about the nearby girls’ college and questioned why the tender remained active despite the proposal being sent back for reconsideration.
Council Critics
Revenue Department Explanation
Whether the tender should have remained active
Council Critics
Kishan Suryavanshi and Yogendra Singh Chauhan opposed the proposal, and Suryavanshi said it was seriously questionable that the tender remained live after the council deferred the matter.
Revenue Department Explanation
Revenue officials said the tender was uploaded before the council proceedings were formally communicated to them and said further action would follow once the meeting minutes were received.
Suitability of the location
Council Critics
Council chairperson Kishan Suryavanshi objected because a girls’ college is nearby and said hotels or restaurants could attract groups of young men, creating possible law-and-order and eve-teasing concerns.
Revenue Department Explanation
The articles do not report a specific public defense of the proposed commercial use beyond the revenue officials’ explanation about the timing of the tender and meeting minutes.
- Property
- Son Chiraiya Women’s Hawkers’ Corner
- Area
- 770.91 square metres
- Proposed lease
- Seven years
- Minimum annual fee
- Rs 20,35,202
- Council action
- Proposal sent back to the Mayor-in-Council for reconsideration
- Final administrative action
- Commissioner Sanskriti Jain ordered immediate cancellation of the bids